Clarksville, TN Eminent Domain Protest

Richard Swift and Wayne Wilkinson are developers in Clarksville, Tenn., who are using the power of government to benefit developers—and they sued citizens, demanding $500,000, simply for saying so.

The Clarksville Property Rights Coalition, a grassroots group formed to fight the eminent domain abuse, ran an ad in the local newspaper criticizing elected officials and developers for backing a redevelopment plan including eminent domain. Swift is a developer and a member of the Clarksville City Council, and Wilkinson is a member of Clarksville’s Downtown District Partnership.

These thin-skinned bullies are trying to silence and intimidate their critics with frivolous litigation. But all citizens have a First Amendment right to speak out against government abuse—without getting sued for their speech by the very people whose actions they are protesting.

IJ stepped in to defend the CPRC and its members and set an example that activists fighting eminent domain abuse will not be silenced by such attempts at censorship.